Dessert

One of my coworkers had her last day at the office a couple of months ago and in celebration of her next adventure, I made her a homemade funfetti cake. I used this recipe which turned out AMAZING but I decided to decorate it using a fun homemade cake topper that couldn’t be easier to put together.

Steps

Cut off a 12-16 inch piece of string. Note: for a smaller cake, you want the string to be shorter, so you can adjust the length based on cake size and your preference.

Wrap a couple of inches of the string around the top of one of the skewers and tie in a knot to secure. Wrap the other end of the string around the top of the other skewer and use a dot of glue to secure.

Cut 1-inch pieces of washi tape. Because my message was “YAY,” I cut three pieces of tape, but you can cut more depending on your message for the topper.

Place the pieces of cut washi tape sticky side up on your work surface and place the string that connects the skewers in the center of each piece of washi tape. Fold the tape in half, sandwiching the string in the middle, and secure.

Using your scissors, cut a little triangle out of the bottom of the folded washi tape for a cute banner effect.

Happy almost Fourth of July everyone! I hope you have something fun planned for the holiday weekend! I, for one, am celebrating America’s birthday in style with these festive shortcakes {and a bunch of beer + BBQ, duh}.These shortcakes are amazing for a few reasons: 1) they are suuuper easy to put together, 2) you can prepare everything the morning of your holiday shindig and just assemble when you’re ready for dessert and 3) they are the perfect summer dessert with refreshing lemon zest-dotted whipped cream and fresh fruit! The actual shortcakes are made with cornmeal which might sound a bit weird, but it gives the shortcakes a little bite {texture on fleek} and it imparts this slightly sweet, earthy flavor to the dessert. Before you pop the shortcakes into the oven, you sprinkle them with a little bit of sugar which adds sweet caramelized goodness to the top of the shortcake. Now, let’s talk about those toppings…they seriously take this dessert to the next level! The fresh summer berries are tossed with lemon zest, lemon juice and sugar. The berries are popped into the fridge and after a little while, the berries start to break down and create a delicious sauce with the lemon juice, zest and sugar. It is seriously pure heaven.

To bring the lemony-fresh flavor to another level, the whipped cream is incorporated with a little lemon zest. It is the perfect compliment to the berry mixture and the slightly-sweet shortcake.

FOR THE SHORTCAKES: Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F. If you plan on cooking your shortcakes directly on a sheet pan, line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. If you plan on serving them in mini cast iron skillets, butter the skillets and place on top of a baking sheet.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, sugar and salt. Add the chunks of cold butter and using your hands, break up the butter and combine it with the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Your hands will start to melt the butter, so you want to do this as quickly as possible.

Add the heavy cream and use a wooden spoon to mix until the dough comes together into a ball.

Transfer the dough onto a floured surface and knead a few times until the dough just starts to come together.

Cut the dough into 4-5 even pieces and either place directly on the parchment-lined baking sheets or in the buttered mini cast iron skillets. Sprinkle the top of each shortcake with a pinch of sugar.

Bake until risen and slightly golden brown, about 20 minutes. Place on a rack to cool.

FOR THE BERRIES: Toss all of the berries together in a large bowl and set aside 1 cup of the mixed berries for garnish later on. Gently mix together the remaining berries, lemon juice, lemon zest and sugar. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for a minimum of 30 minutes. NOTE: You can prepare the berries the morning of and let them sit in the fridge all day until you eat.

FOR THE WHIPPED CREAM: Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, whisk together the heavy cream until soft peaks just begin to form. Add in the powdered sugar, vanilla extract and lemon zest and whisk just until hard peaks start to form. NOTE: You can prepare the whipped cream the morning of and let it sit in the fridge all day until you eat.

ASSEMBLE THE SHORTCAKES: Top each shortcake with a big spoonful of berries and their juice.Finish with a dollop of whipped cream and a few of the reserved berries and serve!

When my family took a trip to Greece a while back, we had this baked feta in phyllo dough topped with honey and black sesame seeds at a taverna and we all fell in love. To put it in perspective, that trip was almost nine years ago and we STILL talk about that amazing baked feta! We were all obsessed.

So of course, when my sister and I went to Greece a couple of weeks ago, we made it our mission to find that same dish at every taverna. We couldn’t get enough of it and we were seriously concerned about the baked feta withdrawals we would go through when we got back to the United States.

But then, it dawned on me – I could just recreate the baked feta it at home {duh!}.

It is one of the easiest dishes to put together and it’s super versatile – you can serve it as an appetizer at a dinner party, as a compliment to a simple green salad, or as a dessert alongside some slices of fresh pear, apple or fig! The sweetness of the honey works perfectly with the saltiness of the warm feta cheese and the buttery, crispy phyllo ties it all together.

Trust me, you’re going to want to make this recipe again and again and everyone will seriously swoon over it! The best part is that you can make it ahead of time and refrigerate for a few days or freeze for up to a month before baking. The takeaway from this post is that you need to make this baked feta ASAP…you can thank me later!

Lay out the phyllo dough sheets on a flat surface and cover with a slightly damp towel. The damp towel will keep the phyllo moist as you work.

Lay out one sheet of phyllo and using a pastry brush, lightly coat the phyllo with melted butter. Top the buttered sheet of phyllo with another sheet and repeat the process until you have used all 12 sheets of phyllo.

Cut the layered phyllo in half with a knife and lay one piece of feta on top of each piece of layered phyllo.

Wrap the feta with the phyllo like you would a present and butter the edges to seal. Turn the feta "packages" crease side down and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Brush the tops of the phyllo-wrapped feta with a little bit of butter and using a knife, make a couple of slits on top. This will allow the air to escape during the baking process.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

Increase the oven heat to 450 degrees and bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until golden brown.

Drizzle with honey and top with a sprinkling of black sesame seeds. Serve immediately.

Happy Friday! I hope you’ve had an awesome week and are getting excited for the weekend.

I, for one, currently look like a zombie and am in serious need of this weekend at home with my family! I’ve been getting over the jetlag from the trip I took to Greece last week with my sister. I’m still daydreaming about the greek salads, the perfect white buildings in Oia and the gorgeous views of the ocean. Stay tuned for a post all about the trip next week!

Now, on to these amazing brownies that you need to make to celebrate the weekend!

I feel like gluten-free and dairy-free treats get a bad rap sometimes. Some people think that means you’re missing out on the flavor and the decadence of the treat. But let me tell you…these brownies are seriously EVERYTHING. Like you need to whip up a batch right now so that you’ll believe me. You seriously need to.

They’re laced with semisweet chocolate chips and a little bit of espresso powder which gives them a rich, chocolatey flavor. Something else to call out is that they are highly addictive. Just going to warn you right off the bat! You will absolutely love them and if you’re celebrating Mother’s Day, they’re the perfect treat for mom!

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Grease an 8x12 baking pan with coconut oil and line with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with an electric mixer for one minute until pale in color.

Mix in both sugars until the sugar is almost dissolved, about 30 seconds and then mix in the coconut oil, the cocoa powder, instant espresso powder, vanilla, coconut flour and kosher salt until combined.

Fold in the coconut-flour-coated chocolate chips {the flour will help ensure that the chips don't fall to the bottom of the brownies when they bake}.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish and sprinkle with a few extra semisweet chocolate chips.

Bake for about 45 minutes and test doneness by sticking a toothpick in the center of the brownies. When it comes out clean, the brownies are ready!

True life: I’m addicted to dark chocolate. I think it’s 90% because it tastes good and 10% because I know it’s considered a ‘healthy’ dessert. Regardless, I love finding ways to incorporate it in recipes and these dark chocolate trail mix bites are seriously the perfect way to enjoy it!

These trail mix bites are super easy to make and the best part is that they are totally customizable depending on your preference! You can make them with milk chocolate, white chocolate, semisweet chocolate, etc. and you can also choose any type of trail mix combo to put on top. The possibilities are honestly endless.

I love making these in bulk on Sunday and packing a few of them each day to bring to work!

Melt the chocolate chips over a double boiler until fully melted and smooth.

Spoon tablespoon portions of the melted chocolate onto the baking sheet and use the back of your spoon to form them into circular coins. Keep portioning out the melted chocolate until you've used it all.

Immediately top each of the chocolate coins with your trail mix of choice. If possible, include one of each nut/dried fruit from your trail mix on each chocolate coin.

Spring is upon us, people, and I am going full throttle with the springtime eats. These lemon bars with blackberry purée are the perfect spring treat AND they are perfect for your Easter festivities!

I’ve always loved lemon bars. They are one of the first desserts I learned to make when I started cooking in middle school. I remember making Ina Garten’s version with my mom and when they turned out to be insanely good, I was beyond excited. I took it a bit too far and was convinced I was destined to be a Food Network star after making that perfect batch.

A lot has changed since those middle school days…I am longer a brace face and I am no longer convinced that I will be the next Food Network star {although how cool would that be!}.

Something that hasn’t changed though, is my undying love for lemon bars! The recipe I’m sharing with you today starts off with a shortbread dough {I used Ina’s recipe for the dough because it is just unbeatable}. The dough is slightly sweet and veeery buttery – in true Ina Garten fashion, of course. Its neutral flavor pairs perfectly with the sweet yet tart lemon filling and once you add in that blackberry purée, it’s game over.

Moving on to the next layer – the lemon filling! It is seriously to-die-for! My recipe has both lemon zest and juice which gives the filling an amazingly bright lemon flavor! It has the perfect amount of tartness to balance out the sugar and it’s just perfection.

To bring the whole thing over the top, I topped the lemon bars with a homemade blackberry purée {YOLO amiright!?}. It is super simple to make and it adds such a pretty color to the whole dessert.

I used a cute flower shaped cookie cutter to cut out little lemon bar flowers! Now if that doesn’t scream spring, I don’t know what does.

I hope you make these lemon bars this spring! They are seriously life changing and who ever you share them with will be so impressed {that is, if you have any left to share}.

Not sure about you guys, but magic shell was part of my childhood. Whenever my parents would have friends over for a dinner party {which was basically every weekend}, the adults would have some sort of fancy, sophisticated dessert while the kids would sit at the “kids table” and eat ice cream topped with magic shell and sprinkles for dessert.

I remember always being in awe when the magic shell would almost immediately harden after coming into contact with the cold ice cream…I legitimately thought it was magic and even though I had seen it happen so many times, I would still be beyond stoked every time. Talk about easily entertained.

After graduating from the “kids table” {when I was like 17 to be honest} I never really ate magic shell on a regular basis. I basically forgot about the stuff until recently when I was walking through the grocery store and there it was, Magic Shell in all its glory.

I was so tempted to buy it then and there but then I thought – “I could totally make this at home!” I immediately googled magic shell at home and found out that coconut oil + chocolate = magic shell via epicurious. Mind. Blown.

I think the thing that I am most excited about is that this is a healthy dessert. Dark chocolate is full of antioxidants and coconut oil is a healthy fat that also can improve your cholesterol levels. I tested out some chocolate/coconut oil ratios, added some espresso powder to enhance the chocolate flavor and voila!

You can enjoy this on ice cream, froyo, milkshakes, etc. You could even get crazy and top it with flakey sea salt!

Like the rest of America, I’m obsessed with Girl Scout cookies. Thin Mints, Samoas and Tagalongs to be exact. They are seriously addicting and they bring back memories of me going door to door in my Girl Scout uniform, trying to convince people to buy multiple boxes of cookies {my priority was obviously winning the prize associated with selling the most boxes in Troop 707}.

This year I found myself with boxes on boxes of GS cookies and because I decided I needed to stop eating them by the handful out of the freezer, I incorporated them into a fun and delicious snack that’s even more caloric! Logical, right?

I’m calling this snack “Thin Mint Popcorn Bark” but it honestly should be called “Thin Mint Pretzel Popcorn Bark with White Chocolate and a Minty Chocolate Drizzle.” Too bad that’s too much of a mouthful {pun intended}.

It’s seriously addicting and the best part is that it’s so easy to put together! You just really need this in your life right now.

Line one large or two small rimmed sheet pans with parchment paper and set aside.

Pour the popcorn kernels into a brown paper lunch bag and loosely fold just the top of the bag to ensure the kernels don't fall out. Microwave on high for 3 minutes or until there are more than 3 seconds between popping noises.

Pour the popped popcorn, pretzels and Thin Mint pieces into a large bowl and set aside.

Over a double boiler, melt the white chocolate chips until completely melted and smooth. Working quickly, pour the melted white chocolate into the popcorn, pretzel and Thin Mint mixture and toss together using your hands. You want to ensure that the white chocolate is evenly coating the snack mixture.

Pour the mixture onto the prepared sheet pan(s) and gently press down into an even layer.

Allow the bark to set in the freezer for 1 hour.

Ten minutes before the bark is done setting, melt the semisweet chocolate chips over a double boiler. Once melted and smooth, stir in the peppermint extract.

Drizzle the melted mint chocolate over the bark and finish with a sprinkle of sea salt.

Either allow the bark to rest for another 30 minutes in the freezer, or dig in right away!

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Here are some of the tools I used to make this recipe. Just click on the photos to be taken to the product pages!

I’m a huuuge sucker for pancakes. I made a fall pumpkin version here and let me tell ya, this is not the last you will see of pancakes on my blog.

I wanted to make a treat that was perfect for Valentine’s Day morning – whether you’re spending it with your sweetie or with your best friends. This recipe is so easy to put together and it will definitely put a smile on everyone’s face.

Although it might seem artificial, I’ve been using clear vanilla extract for my vanilla cake ever since reading that the famous Milk Bar uses it to make their birthday cake. It really takes these pancakes to the next level, but you can obviously swap in regular vanilla extract if that’s what you have on hand!

Slice 4 individual tablespoons-worth of butter {follow the markers on the butter wrap}. Lay out each pat of butter and with a small heart cookie cutter or with a knife, punch out a heart shape. Place the four butter hearts on a plate and place in the fridge.

In a medium bowl, stir together the pancake mix, cake mix, milk, water, vanilla, eggs and sprinkles together, adding a little extra milk if you want your pancakes thinner and a little extra pancake mix if you like them a bit thicker. Make sure not to over mix as this will result in tough pancakes.

Melt the remaining 1 Tbsp butter in a large pan or griddle over medium-low heat and wait for it to bubble slightly. Portion out your pancake batter to your desired size and cook on the first side until bubbles form and the edges of your pancakes turn golden brown, about 4 minutes. Flip and cook for an additional 2 minutes until cooked through.

Stack the pancakes on a plate and top with butter hearts, maple syrup and additional sprinkles.

Ok peeps, just want to get a gut check here – do you discriminate against blondies like me? I’m not talking about blonde-haired people, I’m talking about the dessert.

Well I, for one, have always been able to eaaasily pass up a blondie, but the minute I’m confronted with a brownie, it’s game over. That all ended last weekend.

I went home to SF for the weekend and my mom made these rich, decadent, nutty, buttery, chocolate-chip-studded blondies and I am now a complete convert!

I decided to whip up the same batch when I got back to LA but I spruced them up a bit to be skillet blondies and to have all kinds of valentine-y sprinkles in them. Your significant other/your girlfriends with love you even more when you make these for them and you will be obsessed! Warning: there’s a lotttt of butter in this dessert but it’s 100% worth it.

I followed this recipe that my mom gave me from Food52 {one of my all-time favorite food blogs/cooking supply sites} and as I mentioned, I Valentine-d them out. I hope you enjoy!

Melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan. Swirl it around a few times. It will foam and spatter. After 3 to 4 minutes, it will start to smell nutty. Don’t walk away. It’s ready when the sizzling quiets down and you see little brown bits drop to the bottom of the pan.

Pour into a large bowl. Cool completely (about 30 minutes).

Heat oven to 350° F and set aside 4 mini skillets or 1 large skillet. No need to butter the dishes.

In a small bowl, whisk together flour and salt and in a separate small bowl, whisk together eggs and vanilla. Set aside.

Add brown sugar to the cooled butter. Mix with a wooden spoon until sugar and butter are incorporated.

Add the egg and vanilla mixture to butter and sugar mixture and mix until combined and shiny, making sure not to over-mix.

Add flour mixture to the butter, sugar and egg mixture. Mix until there are still a few pockets of flour visible and then add chocolate chips and jimmies. Mix until evenly distributed and all flour pockets are gone, but be careful not to over-mix.

Spoon dough into your skillet pans and spread evenly with the back of a spoon. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. You can’t do the toothpick test with this because it always comes out clean {hello butter}. Instead, look for a crispy top that's just starting to crack. Firm slightly-browned edges. And when you press on the center, you don’t want it to feel really soft.

Remove from the oven. Cool completely and top with more sprinkles and chocolate syrup.

Ok peeps – I definitely have an obsessions with peppermint. It just feels so right to consume anything and everything peppermint flavored around the holidays!

I was sipping on this rich peppermint hot cocoa last week and decided that I needed to re-create the drink in brownie form!The result? Rich peppermint hot chocolate brownies that consist of layers of brownie, peppermint oreo cookies and toasted peppermint marshmallows {swoon}!

These peppermint hot cocoa brownies are seriously something to write home about and they are definitely Santa-approved! {Move over, cookies!}.

2 cups mini marshmallows {I used a mixed or regular and peppermint marshmallows}

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a 9x9 inch baking pan with tin foil. Spray with cooking spray and set aside.

In a small pot over low heat, melt the butter. Add in the sugar and cocoa powder, whisking until combined with the butter.

Turn off the heat and add in the coffee, vanilla extract, peppermint extract and eggs and whisk until incorporated. Finally, add in the flour and whisk until batter is smooth and silky.

Pour half of the batter into the foil-lined pan and spread evenly with a spatula. Sprinkle the crushed peppermint oreos evenly and then pour the remaining batter on top.

Bake the brownies for 25-30 minutes and test doneness with a toothpick {if the toothpick comes out clean, the brownies are ready for the marshmallow layer; if it comes out dirty, cook them for another 5 minutes}.

Once the brownies are cooked through, take them out of the oven and set the oven to broil. Cover the brownies with the mini marshmallows and then pop them into the broiler for 2-3 minutes, checking them every 30 seconds to ensure they aren't burning.

Once the marshmallows are nice and toasty, remove the brownies from the oven and allow them to rest for 1-2 hours until they are completely cooled.

My two sisters and I reaaaally get into the spirit when we come home for the holidays…we currently have homemade marshmallows in the pantry, six dozen biscotti on cooling racks, and freshly made sugar cookie dough in the fridge. You could say that we go all out when it comes to holiday baking, and these gingerbread cookies are no exception.

We found the recipe for these gingerbread cookies on King Arthur’s site {I swear this isn’t an ad} because it honestly looked the best of any recipe we saw! It has a perfect balance of sweet and spice and it yielded a cookie that is slightly crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside.

Melt butter in the microwave in a small glass bowl, then stir in the brown sugar, molasses, salt, and spices.

Transfer the mixture to a medium-sized mixing bowl, let it cool to lukewarm, and beat in the egg.

Whisk the baking powder and soda into the flour, and then stir the dry ingredients into the molasses mixture.

Divide the dough in half, and wrap well. Refrigerate for 1 hour or longer.

Preheat your oven to 350°F and line several baking sheets with with parchment paper.

Once the dough has chilled, take one piece of dough out of the refrigerator, and flour a clean work surface, and the dough. Roll it out as thin or thick as you like; for slightly less crisp cookies, roll it out more thickly.

Cut out shapes with a cookie cutter, cutting them as close to one another as possible.

Transfer the cookies to the parchment-lined baking sheets and bake the cookies just until they're slightly brown around the edges 8 to 12 minutes, or until they feel firm.

Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for several minutes, or until they're set and then transfer to a rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Make the Royal Icing

Place the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add the cool water, and stir slowly to allow the sugar to dissolve.

Mix on low speed at first, increasing to high speed over several minutes until

Keep the frosting covered with a damp towel and some plastic wrap until you have time to use it.

To use for piping, put a tip in the bottom of a large plastic or pastry bag and use a tall, heavy-bottomed glass to hold the pastry bag while you add the frosting.

In college, I studied abroad in Spain and one of my absolute favorite things I ate {or I guess drank} while I was there was Spanish-style hot chocolate + churros {chocolate con churros}.

The hot chocolate is thick {almost ganache-like}, decadent, rich, sweet, delicious and the perfect treat!I was kind of addicted to the stuff and ever since, I’ve been wanting to recreate it in my own kitchen!

With the holidays approaching, I decided I would make a version with a peppermint kick and let me tell ya…this stuff is the real deal.

The espresso powder intensifies the chocolate flavor and the peppermint whipped cream cuts the richness of the hot chocolate in all of the right ways. It is perfection and you need to make it right away this holiday season!

In a large glass or stainless steel bowl over a double boiler, melt both chocolates together until smooth. Add the espresso powder and powdered sugar and whisk until incorporated.

Next, add ¼ cup of the heavy cream, whisking until the chocolate absorbs it and then add the milk in ½ cup increments, stirring at each addition until silky and combined.

Make the peppermint whipping cream.

In a medium bowl with a hand-held or stand mixer, beat the remaining 1 cup of heavy cream for about 2 minutes until it starts to get frothy.

Add in the powdered sugar and peppermint extract and then beat again on high for another 3 minutes until medium peaks form {you want this to be fluffy, but not so thick that it starts to turn into butter}.

Assemble your yummy drink!

In a nice festive mug, pour the hot chocolate mixture ¾ of the way. top with a dollop of the whipping cream and chards of chopped up candy cane and chocolate.

Enjoy!

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Notes

Since this hot chocolate is so thick and rich, it’s sometimes fun to serve it in smaller portions. Try serving on a tray in shot glasses with all of the fixings. It will really impress your party guests + friends without overwhelming them with richness!

Yep. You read that right. It’s happening. I’ll admit it, these are definitely not inspired by the holiday, but they are inspired by the fact that I had three very ripe bananas that I was about to toss last night. I thought to myself…”would Martha Stewart or Ina Garten throw these bananas away?” NOPE!

So I cranked up the oven, rounded up all of my kitchen tools and ingredients, and got to baking!

Pre-heat your oven to 325 F and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, vegetable oil, brown sugar and white sugar until smooth. Crack in the egg and whisk to combine, without over mixing. Lastly, stir in the mashed banana and set the bowl aside.

In a separate medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt.

Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients in three parts, until everything is fully combined - again, making sure not to overmix. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips and walnuts.

Use an ice cream scoop (or a spoon if you don't have one) to fill the muffin tins with twelve muffins. Sprinkle the top with some extra mini chocolate chips (because you want these to be instagram-able, of course).

Bake for 25-30 minutes, testing with a toothpick after about 25 minutes. When the toothpick comes out clean, they're done!

As I mentioned earlier…the holidays are upon us, people! For me, the holidays mean shopping, but more importantly, baking! Holiday baking is seriously my favorite activity {that’s saying a lot} and each year, I get a little too excited about it.

Last year, I whipped up these amazing Chocolate Chocolate Chip Peppermint Cookies for my friends that were to-die-for and this year, I’m kicking things off with something just as delicious, but so much easier to put together!

When I was younger, my best friend’s moms would make this stuff she called “Reindeer Chow”…essentially this sweet, yummy, creamy version of Chex Mix for reindeer {because they usually get the shaft with carrots and water on Christmas Eve}.

When I stumbled upon this “Christmas Crack” recipe from What’s Gaby Cooking {AKA my food blogging idol}, it took me right back to the good days! It’s salty, sweet, crunchy, creamy, chocolatey…pretty much the best thing ever and you need to make it right away!

In a very large bowl, add the three different types of Chex, the pretzel sticks and the M&M's, making sure to reserve ½ cup of each type of the M&M's.

Over a double boiler, melt the white chocolate until smooth, stirring every few minutes with a spatula.

Pour the warm, melted white chocolate into the bowl of dry mix. Moving quickly, use your hands to incorporate the white chocolate with the mix until the white chocolate coats each little morsel.

Quickly pour the mix onto two parchment paper lined baking sheets and even out using your hands. You want the chow to be pressed flat and to be 1-2 inches high. Pour the reserved M&M's on top for a little pop of color.

Let the mix set for 3-4 hours until set and then break apart into large pieces. Store in an air-tight plastic bag {if there's any left...trust me, this stuff is addicting!}.